Better Late Than Never
by Dian Legion
Summary: At sixteen, much to his displeasure, Sherlock Holmes is entrusted to the league Champion, John, to mentor his adventures through the Pokemon world. But with wild Pokemon, aggressive trainers, criminals and maybe even some romance lurking around every corner, they may have bitten off more than they can chew.
1. The Journey Begins

John sighed as he strolled towards Professor Holmes' laboratory, the sun beating down on him and the Ampheros that walked right beside him. He didn't know much about the man but he had called him and asked him to accompany his grandson on his Pokémon journey. He'd been told that the grandson, named Sherlock, knew a lot about Pokémon but lacked the physical experience, the boy was sixteen after all, and hadn't even begun his own journey. John was nineteen and beat the elite four, as the new champion he was often asked advice and for appearances, but never had he been asked to watch over an entire journey. He took a deep breath and smiled brightly before he knocked on the lab door.

"I don't need a mentor!" Sherlock exclaimed, dropping onto the sofa in his grandfather's library, his Eevee sitting obediently at his feet. He had chosen his Eevee when he was ten, fascinated with it's ability to evolve into seven different Pokémon. It wasn't a standard starter but Sherlock had insisted that noting else would do. He didn't care much for the fighting of Pokémon, he thought it was tedious and just a bit barbaric. But of course his brother just had to force him on a journey, and with some no doubt idiotic, arrogant trainer weighing him down.

"It's only until you get on your feet and have a few more Pokemon." the tall, grey haired man replied with a sigh. "And that must be him, so at least try to be a bit friendly." Professor Holmes warned before heading to open the door, lab coat flourishing behind him.

Professor Holmes opened the door to find the young trainer. "You must be John." he grinned before offering a hand. "And you must be Professor Holmes, pleasure to meet you." the blond replied as returned the handshake firmly. His Amphrose made a delighted squeal, he had a soothe bell tied gently around his tail and it made a tinkling noise as he moved. "It's nice to meet you in person, this is my best friend, Mar." Sherlock looked down at his partner as he listened to the voices down the hall, the Eevee looking up as well. "Eevee" the Pokémon voiced. "I agree completely." Sherlock replied with a sigh.

"A delight to have you here." he greeted with a bright smile. "Both of you." he said with a nod to Mar. "I feel I should warn you though. When you meet my grandson, don't judge him on what he says for the first hour you're with him."

John looked confused for a moment but nodded, "I take it he's less than happy I'm here?" "He feels your guidance is unnecessary." the Professor gave an apologetic smile. "He does want to learn, but he wants to do it his way."

John chuckled, "I know how that feels, I was the same." he smiled, "Thank you for the warning though." He smiled and turned to his friend, "Hey Mar, ready to make some friends?" the creature squealed again but this time it's tail lip up with it's pure joy. John chuckled and said, "Let's go meet him then."

Sherlock looked up when he heard the footsteps approach the room. "I presume you are my new keeper?" Eevee looked warily at the new Pokémon, only having had minimal experience with other Pokémon, let alone one that much stronger than it.

"Looks like it." John said. Mar sat down and waved his glowing tail around, the soothe bell tinkling lightly. He extended the tail closer to the Eevee but didn't touch the Pokemon, letting it make that choice for it's self. "My name's John, what's yours?" he asked, smiling warmly.

"Sherlock Holmes." the teen replied coolly. The Eevee reached a paw up hesitantly and touched the bell curiously.

"It's nice to meet you Sherlock." his smile brightened and he extended a hand to sake. Mar waved his tail lightly, making the bell tinkle for the Eevee. Mar preferred to spend time with younger Pokemon to encourage them and protect them instead of flaunting his power.

Eevee immediately recoiled at the noise, moving to hide behind it's master's leg. Sherlock looked at the hand with disinterest. "We best be going."

John brought his hand back and nodded, his smile faltering slightly."You've got everything yeah?"

Sherlock indicated the black knapsack hanging off his shoulder. "Please tell me you won't be asking stupid questions this whole trip."

"Not the whole trip, the stupid questions are mandatory for the beginning though." John joked lightly, noticing how light the knapsack was, clothes and potions most likely, a couple of balls hanging off his belt. No doubt he was extremely under prepared but he decided to let the man learn for himself. "Let us be on our way then." He smiled and turned to the door.

Sherlock arched an eyebrow before walking towards the door. "Eevee, come." he called, the Pokémon following quickly. "Go easy on him." Professor Holmes said with a smile. "Can't promise anything." Sherlock replied dryly. "I wasn't talking to you." the Professor smirked. Sherlock rolled his eyes at his grandfather before making his way out the door.

"I will." John said and smiled before following the new trainer out the door.


	2. First Night

"So, what interests do you have in Pokemon, simply studying, battling, or breeding?" John asked once they had cleared the town limits.

The younger teen had been observing the Pokemon that seemed to sprout through the grass everywhere he looked. Sherlock noticed Eevee was keeping especially close to him, he cast a glance at what must be the problem, the bloody Ampheros. "If I was interested in battling I wouldn't be starting a journey at sixteen." he replied coldly.

John nodded and noticed the Eevee's demeanor, how timid the creature was. "So what are your goals then?" he asked.

"Observe and probably a few experiments." Sherlock replied.

"Sounds good to me." they walked until the day had finished in relative silence, night coming on and light was fading, John would have kept walking had he not noticed the small Eevee and it's master becoming tired. He led them on until the found a clearing that would make a nice camp site. "I think we'll stop here for the night." John said and dropped his rather heavy backpack. "Can I have a little light Mar?" He asked and the Ampharos lit up it's tail brightly so he could see, he dug around in his bag and set down an egg, in some blankets and started putting up a tent. Mar sat and guarded the egg out of habit and had it's tail positioned so John could see what he was doing. Once the tent was in place he took out some Pokefood and put it in a large bowl and let his team out. Out came a Dragonite, an Arcanine, a Blastoise , and a Hitmonchan. Who all looked curiously at their new friends.

Eevee pulled back immediately, it growled defensively at the intimidating Pokemon. "Why do you have an Eevee egg?" Sherlock asked curiously. He had memorized everything he could about Pokémon. From egg identification, different natures, and even every different type of berry. But even without that he would know, remembering the brown and tan striped egg he had studied for hours before it eventually hatched into his only friend.

"I was in Goldenrod and the daycare said they had an egg that the trainer didn't want. I couldn't just leave it there so I took this little sweetie with me." John said as he gathered some wood and then had his Arcanine light it for them while he began to make dinner for him and Sherlock. The other Pokemon ignored the Eevee but Mar got a large leaf and piled some Pokefood on it and placed it in front of the Eevee and made a small sound.

The Eevee looked up cautiously before venturing to take a bit of the Pokefood. It made a happy noise and began eating crouched down. Sherlock nodded before opening his bag and taking out a small metal box. He pushed a small button and suddenly a tent had formed from the spot.

John looked at the tent, he'd give the springs about a month before it would have to be set up manually. His other Pokemon finished their food and lay down next to the fire, Arcanine occasionally blowing a bit more flame to keep it hot. Mar sat beside the others, cradling the egg affectionately. The trainer and his Pokemon would both sleep close together and keep each other and the egg warm. John dished up their food, a nice chicken and vegetable soup, and handed Sherlock's bowl to him with a spoon.

Sherlock accepted the bowl but put it to the side as he pulled his notebook out of his bag. Eevee finished his Pokefood and moved to sit in it's master's lap. Sherlock made room for the Pokémon and placed a hand on it's head as Eevee began to purr softly. He had long ago lost patience for having to use the Pokeball on Eevee.

"What are you writing?" John asked. "If you don't mind me asking that is." He said, taking a bite of his food.

"How long has the egg been in you possession?" he asked not looking up from his paper, ignoring John's question all together.

"About a weak now, I found it on my way back from the Safari zone to come get you. I can feel it move sometimes, and I can tell it will be hatching soon. I've gotten a lot of my Pokemon from eggs, even Mar. He hatched the same day I was born and we've been together ever since." He finished eating and took the egg from his Pokemon and let Mar eat the leftovers as a treat.

Sherlock nodded, already excited to study the new Pokémon. Eevee let out a soft yawn and nuzzled deeper into the brunet's lap. "So you've had it since you were born?"

"Yeah, my mum thought it would be cute to take a picture of the two 'babies' together and Mar took to me, He wouldn't listen to anyone else and staid with me all the time. And you know the Rhyme 'mary had a little lamb'? Mar literally followed me everywhere I went." he held the egg close and Mar began to drift off, leaning on John softly. "We've been through a lot together."

Sherlock glanced up at the pair. "I assume battling will be a requirement of our arrangement?" he had taught Eevee well. His Pokémon was well trained in both offensive and evasive techniques and each move was honed and mastered. The only problem is, all this training had been done with inanimate objects rather than other Pokémon.

"Some yes, but nothing that will badly hurt Eevee, and all you have to do is tell me and I'll step in to finish the battle. I have everything we'll need to treat him immediately. Everything from antidotes and hyper potions to max revives." he smiled sheepishly, "But we'll only train to help him get stronger, so he can protect you and himself. And you choose when to battle, I won't force you to do anything."

Sherlock nodded before casting his gaze into the fire. He often thought about what form his Eevee would end up taking. He weighed the pros and cons of each different type but even after six years was no closer to a definite answer. His brother would often comment on the fact that his only Pokémon was simply a normal type, true it Eevee's double edge was something to be feared, he knew it still wouldn't be enough.

John looked at his human companion and saw the look in his eyes, "You don't have to evolve him you know. Are you sure he even wants to evolve? And if so what into?"

Sherlock jumped a bit at the other boy's insight into his thoughts. "But that's the point, isn't it? Evolve and train until you're the very best."

"No. That doesn't have to be the point. I became Champion to try to teach people about ways to raise their Pokemon, to do it with love. Even while training to be strong, I always gave my Pokemon the choice on if they evolved or not." John said, "And I intend to do the same with this little one," he said, gesturing to the egg, "If it wants to stay an Eevee forever I'll let it because I know that is what will make it happy. But I'll also train it to reach it's highest potential."

Sherlock held John's gaze again. Perhaps he wasn't such an idiot after all. He only broke their eye contact when his Eevee began to toss and turn in his lap. He smiled in amusement as he managed to roll out of his lap, startling itself awake. It looked around quickly in a panic before realizing it's master was there, calming instantly. "Why don't you go keep my bed warm? I'll be in in a moment." Sherlock said softly as the brown ball of fur stretched and yawned again. The Pokémon licked his hand before padding into the small tent and curling itself up in the sleeping bag. Sherlock watched in amusement, a fond smile on his face before turning back to John, his cheeks coloring slightly at being seen in anything less than his cool mask.

"You'll make a wonderful trainer. That kind of affection and devotion to your Pokemon... it's what I strive to teach people." He smiled.

Sherlock cleared his throat. "Right, well. It's probably time we turned in."

"Yeah, probably. Yell if you need anything, I'm a light sleeper." He said and nudged Mar, the pokemon waking slowly, "Come on friend, time to get into bed." The Pokemon nodded and crawled into the tent, he let the fire burn to keep his other Pokemon warm during the night. "Goodnight Sherlock, sleep well."

Sherlock hummed. "Good night." he stood and made it into the tent, quickly changing and dropping back onto the soft sleeping bag. He sighed as he let his mind drift. It drifted to John. Experienced, caring, kind, handsome John. He shook his head to dispel that last thought. "Eevee." was his Pokémon's sleepy response, as if he knew what he had known what his master had been thinking. "Oh shut up." Sherlock grimaced as he snuggled into his pillow.


	3. One Hell Of A Ride

Sherlock was woken up at dawn by Eevee licking at his face. He groaned and ran his fingers through his unruly curls. "Why do you insist on doing that **every** morning?" he complained, sitting up and stretching over his head. Sherlock quickly changed and tamed his curls as best he could before stepping out of the tent, Eevee on his heels.

He was met with the sight of John sat by the relit fire, his own camp sight already packed away with the exception of his cooking utensils while he made breakfast, Mar at his side, once again cuddling the egg. In the field next to them he could see the rest of John's Pokemon running about, wanting to get exercise while they could, not knowing if they would be called out until they settled for camp that night. "Morning." he said with a smile, "This morning's special is scrambled eggs and toast."

"Morning." Sherlock greeted cooly as he resumed his seat by the fire, Eevee sitting obediently by his side. Unlike most trainers, he refused to follow the silly tradition of wearing multiples of the same exact outfit, so today he was dressed in tight black jeans, his purple t-shirt and he had even forced himself to wear his new trainers. He hadn't anticipated just how much the walking they were going to have to do on this journey would tire his feet.

John was wearing a pair of dark, baggy jeans and black tank top that showed off his muscular arms. He had on a worn yet comfy pair of trainers, tightly laced. He handed Sherlock a plate of food and Mar nudged a bowl of Pokefood to Eevee.

Eevee was ecstatic at the gift and after hesitating for a moment, nuzzled Mar's paw with it's head for just a second in thanks. Sherlock gave a short thank you under his breath to John and took out his notebook, writing his observation of each of the Pokemon around them and how they interacted.

John ate his food with a hum. "Sleep well?" he asked, looking up at the other with a friendly smile.

"Fine." Sherlock answered shortly, his eyes glancing from Arcanine and then back to his notes.

John watched and followed Sherlock's gaze, trying to figure out a way to break down his walls a bit. "Do you want a closer look?" he asked.

Sherlock looked up, a bit surprised. "Absolutely." he replied instantly.

John's grin before standing and whistling. "Acanine!" he called, the massive dog immediately barreling towards them. Eevee immediately jumped into his trainer's lap in fear, curling up defensively.

Arcanine howled as he stopped and sat obediently in front of John, the dog a full head taller than it's trainer. "Hey, Pup." the blond grinned, petting at the Pokemon's fur. "Well come on." John said with a nod at his companion. "He doesn't bite. Well, unless I tell him to." he joked lightly.

Sherlock stood, notebook in one hand, his other cradling his still terrified Pokemon.

John stepped away from his Arcanine and towards Sherlock. "No need to be scared little guy." he said in a gentle voice. He reached out a hand slowly and held it just before touching the brown ball of fur still hiding in it's master's chest. After a moment Eevee ventured it's head out sniffing at John's hand before leaning into his finger tips. John's smile grew as he pressed to pet the side of Eevee's head properly, receiving a nuzzle in return. "See. We're not so bad." he said softly. "May I?" he asked, looking up at a shocked Sherlock.

Sherlock nodded silently, loosening his grip. Never in six years has Sherlock seen his Pokemon take to anyone, at all, let alone so quickly. Sherlock didn't have friends and the interaction he had with other people was very limited, therefore, Eevee's was as well. Eevee tentatively pulled away from his trainer and into John's waiting arms.

John held Eevee close to his chest, and walked back over to Arcanine. Eevee attempted to climb up and over John's shoulder in fear claws digging into the blond. The Champion kept a firm grip on him, not even wincing at the pain. "It's okay, little guy." John said calmly, running his hand over the Eevee's back and tail. "Arc, this is Eevee." he introduced to the large dog. Arcanine leaned forward and sniffed the newcomer. "Arc." the Pokemon said in approval. Eevee turned it's head a bit. "Eevee?" he said nervously. "Come on." John grinned.

Sherlock watched curiously as Eevee's claws retracted and he relaxed slightly in John's hold. Eevee rested his paws on John's chest, turning his head to sniff at the fire Pokemon. He licked Arcanine's nose in greeting, the other shaking his head at the weird sensation, making John laugh. "Looks like you made a friend, Arc." he grinned before turning to the young trainer behind him. "Sherlock, come here."

Sherlock walked over to him. "Give me your hand." John said, offering his own, palm up. "John, I don't think..." "Sherlock." he repeated, flexing his fingers. The genius sighed but gave him his hand.

John placed it between Arcanine's eyes, petting down his muzzle. Sherlock's eyes widened slightly, Pokemon never liked him, let alone let him touch them. He memorized the texture of the white and orange fur running through his fingers. He noted that the Pokemon felt much warmer than he imagined.

The older teen eventually took his hand away and let Sherlock pet his Pokemon on his own. "Have you ever ridden a Pokemon before?" he asked with a grin.

The brunet's head snapped up. "No." he said quickly, trying to not let the touch of fear he felt show in his voice.

John chuckled. "Arc, down." he commanded, the fire-type crouched flat on the ground. "Well, get on." the blond grinned. Sherlock shook his head adamantly, his curls bouncing with the motion.

"Come on." John laughed. "It'll be fine, I do it all the time." he raised an eyebrow. "Besides, if we ever want to get over to the other regions he's kind of our ride."

"Oh." Sherlock replied, looking down at the Pokemon and then back at his own Eevee. He sighed before nodding.

"Alright." John grinned brightly. He watched as Sherlock straddled the Arcanine. "Better hold on."

Sherlock felt ridiculous as he mounted the Pokemon before gripping tight to white fur as he was no longer touching the ground, his feet now dangling off the sides of the dog.

"Okay, just relax and lean forward a bit." John instructed, the other doing as he was told. "Okay Arc, not too fast, don't want him scared off just yet." Arcanine barked in reply before taking off across the field.

Sherlock yelped as he was thrown forward, holding on for dear life as they whipped past the tall grasses and into the trees. The wind blew his bangs back giving him full view as they barely missed a few.

It took a bit but eventually Sherlock got used to the feel of just how fast they were going. He dared to look around them, when he wasn't being thrown side to side by turns, and his eyes opened wide at what he say. Every tree was full of Pokemon of every kind. They ended up racing past a stream and both Sherlock and Arcanine were shocked when they were suddenly drenched in water. Arcanine skids to a stop, nearly sending his rider flying. He turned and growled and Sherlock was shocked to find a small Totodile on it's back and laughing hysterically.

Both Pokemon and trainer were dripping wet as they glared at the culprit. The Totodile flipped back up to it's feet and reared back. "Oh no you d-" he was interrupted as a jet of water gushed into his face.

The Totodile laughed again but was met with loud menacing bark from Arcanine. The water-type yelped and dove back into the stream and disappeared under the water.

Sherlock sighed. "I think that's quite enough for now." he said to himself, and was shocked when his ride took off the way they came.

"Hey!" John called once they came back into view, having to fight down a laugh once he got a good look at them. The wind had dried them off, but it also sent their respective fur and hair sticking up all over the place.

"What happened to you two?" he asked as Sherlock quickly got off. "A bloody Totodile happened." he grumbled. Arcanine shook it's body, getting rid of any excess water, and making his fur puff up even more.

John took a few Pokeblocks out of his pocket and held them out to the fire-type. "Good job, Pup." he praised. "It was good otherwise, right?" he asked, stealing glaces up at the still crazy curls on the younger's head.

"It was...interesting." he replied honestly. John chuckled. "I'll take it. And don't worry, I took care of your little one." the blond assured, passing Eevee back to his trainer, stifling a small laugh. "What's so funny?" Sherlock asked with a frown. John cleared his throat and pointed up. "What is something-" he reached up and felt that his hair was a few inches higher than it should be. He blushed fiercely and hurriedly tried to pat them down.

John bit his lip and and nudged him. "Hey, I'm kidding." he assured. "Let's pack up and head out, yeah?" he pulled out his Pokeballs, holding all three at once he called back Blastoise, Dragonite and Arcanine, leaving Mar out as always.

They packed up camp and John made sure the fire was out and the egg was safe and warm in his bag before setting out again. Eevee and Mar talked happily in front of the trainers and John looked over to see Sherlock still fussing with his curls, even though they were back in place. "They're fine, Sherlock." he chuckled, the other's cheeks tinting pink again. "And it wasn't that bad. I'd even say it was cute."

Sherlock's flush only spread as he looked down at the ground. John smirked slightly but returned his gaze forward, knowing this was the start of a very interesting journey.


	4. New Friends and Old

John looked over at the other about two hours since they started the day, watching as the other gathered all he could about where they were and the Pokemon that ran about, writing it down in that journal of his. "So." he started. "What made you decide to go out on your own now?" he questioned.

"There's only so much you can learn from books. I felt a more hands on approach would be more conducive." he replied simply, not taking his eyes off his notes. And it was true, well half true. Though he'd never admit it out loud, he was lonely. Most of his classmates had left at ten. The ones that didn't were gone by the time they were fourteen. His brother long gone on his own journey and then to University. All he had left was Eevee.

"But why not do your research at the lab?" John followed up. "I'm sure Professor Holmes wouldn't have a problem with it."

"The Pokemon there would skew the data. They are too accustomed to humans and no longer act as if they were in the wild." he returned.

John nodded, that made sense. "Well better late than never I suppose. And if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'll answer them if I can, I have spent quite a bit of time around wild Pokemon." he smiled.

Sherlock looked up at the other. "Noted." he said before once again turning back to his book.

The sun was barely setting, a nearby flock of Pidgeotto nesting for the night, the skyline just tinting pink and orange. "Hey, there's something I want to show you." John grinned as he stepped off the path and going towards the river that had been flowing next to them the whole day. John and Mar jumped over it with little effort, seeming to know the right rocks to use as stepping stones across it.

Sherlock followed. Or at least tried to. Eevee yipped happily as he skipped from rock to rock, thinking it was a game. Sherlock followed the steps John had taken and was nearly to the other side when a Magickarp jumped up just as he was about to jump, causing him to teeter back and lose his footing. He awaited the feeling of freezing water to surround him but it never came. He opened his eyes and was met with John's kind smile looking down on him.

"You alright there?" the older teen asked, one foot braced on the bank of the river and the other on the rock Sherlock had been standing on. He held the other teen with ease by the small of his back, Sherlock's feet still barely gripping the stone, though holding none of his weight.

"Y-Yeah." Sherlock replied shakily, desperately trying to keep his balance, even though there was no way John was going to let him fall.

John pulled him up and steadied him on the rock. "Careful, yeah?" he grinned, stepping back onto the shore, offering a hand to help Sherlock over.

Sherlock took it and stepped over to dry land. "It's just over here." the Champion grinned, leading the other, not letting go of his hand.

Sherlock noticed this and looked down at their still connected hands, feeling the warmth of John's skin on his. Sherlock looked around as the air around them became much warmer and foggier. "Can we get a little light, Mar?" John called. "Amph!" the Pokemon replied as it's tail began to glow brightly. "Okay, now watch you step." John warned before it opened up into a clearing, a huge hot spring coming into view. "Oh I've missed this place." John grinned. Mar, yipped happily before jumping into the steaming water.

John chuckled at his Pokemon, letting go of Sherlock's had to let the rest of his team out. The others were grateful to be out and ecstatic once they realized where they were. "Let's set up camp, and then we'll head in."

Sherlock looked around at the spring, surrounded by smooth rocks, wet from the rising steam. He put his bag down and took out his tent, setting everything up. Eevee poked his paw into the warm water and was shocked when Mar poked his head up from the water under, his lit up tail bobbing behind him.. "Eevee!" he squealed, playfully batting at his new friend.

Sherlock actually smiled slightly at the sight before turning around and blushing at what he saw. John was stood next to his complete campsite, shirtless and working on his trousers. "W-What are you doing?" Sherlock asked quickly.

"Going for a swim, what does it look like?" he teased, left only in his boxers, folding his clothing and putting them in his tent. "Come on!" He bunched up a towel and placed in on one of the rocks next to the hot spring, resting the egg there carefully before lowering himself into the hot water. His Pokemon quickly joining him, the spring was big enough to hold them all comfortably and plenty of room to play. John ducked his head under the water, coming up with a sigh as the warmth surrounded him. He leaned the side of the spring, before looking over to the still dry, clearly apprehensive trainer. "Oi!"

Sherlock cleared his throat before turning to look at the other. "I...that's really okay, John." "Oh, come on!" John chuckled. "It's fun." he promised, smirking as he threw a splash the other's way. "Hey!" Sherlock yelled indignantly, as he jumped back. "Well what are you going to do about it?" John replied, sticking his tongue out at the other.

"Don't act like a child." Sherlock sighed. "You don't act like a child." John mocked with another splash, hitting the other this time. The brunet growled as his clothes were drenched for the second time today. "John!" he complained, being met with laughter. "Sherlock!" he teased with a chuckle. "I mean you're wet anyway now. And you're gonna be cold now." The younger teen frowned before letting out a large sigh. "You're ridiculous." he mumbled before turning around and pulling his shirt over head.

John grinned and if his eyes wandered a bit, well, so be it. Sherlock knew he wasn't what one would call 'attractive'. He was too lanky and thin, he was often told he looked like a Scyther. Children weren't the kindest of people.

He took a deep breath and let his trousers fall, his tight black boxers being the only thing hiding his shame. John cleared his throat and turned back around to the knowing looks of his Pokemon. "Oh shove off you lot." he responded with a splash at his team, unknowingly starting a splash war. When Sherlock turned around, water was flying every which way with all the splashing. "Oi, no fair using Surf!" John cried before being hit with a hydro pump. He leaned over the side, coughing. "Okay, okay, Truce!" he yelled through his gasps.

Sherlock laughed lightly at the sight. He walked over and laughed even harder at the state of his Eevee, currently crouched on the rocks, brown fur sopping and stuck to it's body. "Hey!" Sherlock exclaimed as Eevee shook itself and sprayed his trainer, but Sherlock found he didn't really mind. Eventually the water calmed and Sherlock climbed in with Eevee in his arms, next to John but putting a good bit of space between them.

"You know, you should feel very lucky." John sighed once he relaxed again. "Almost no one knows about this place. It's a secret." he smiled, looking over at the other. "So you better keep it that way." John teased. "And that goes double for you, Mister." he said to Eevee, petting the Pokemon's head. "How did you find this place?" Sherlock asked, watching as Eevee used it's small legs to swim nearer to the other Pokemon.

"Well, I'm not actually the one who found it. It was actually Blastoise who found it." he ran a hand through his hair. "I can't believe he was still just a Squirtle back then." he said with a far off look, remembering the tiny turtle with a fond smile. "But, um, it was about a week after I got him and he just ran off. And he was only my second Pokemon so of course I run after him like an idiot." he chuckled. "So I ended up tripping into the river, and when I finally catch up, he's floating in here, not a care in the world." he said with a sweep of his hand. "He's always been a cheeky bastard." John said with a look at the Pokemon. "Blastoise." the water Pokemon replied.

Sherlock listened to John speak intently, laughing slightly. "You fell in the river?" he chuckled. John nodded. "Yep, and it was barely spring so the bloody thing was freezing." he recalled, sinking lower into the spring water to get rid of the chilly memory.

Sherlock smiled as he pictured it, a ten year old John slipping into the river. He surprisingly thought the vision was, endearing. He was about to ask another question when a blast of hot water hit him in the face, followed by an unfortunately familiar laugh. He looked past John shoulder to see the Totodile mocking him. "Are you following me?" he called in frustration, cause John to look as well.

John grinned. "Hey there." he greeted the small Pokemon. "This your friend?" he asked back at the younger trainer.

"Hardly." Sherlock scoffed. "He attacked us before." he informed. "I'm sure he was just playing." as he said this the Totodile jumped into the spring and began swimming, it's red spikes the only thing visible above the water. It popped up right in front of Sherlock's face, spraying it once more. "Would you leave me alone?!" he exclaimed in frustration looking over to see John laughing at him, his cheeks turning quite red, though he would blame it on the steam around them. "He seems quite taken with you." John grinned. "Maybe you should catch him."

Sherlock rolled his eyes. "All he's doing is shooting water at me, obviously he doesn't like me." John shook his head with a kind smile. "It's just his way of saying he wants you to be his trainer. Here." John took Sherlock's hand and lowered it towards the water-type. Sherlock's hand jumped slightly as it brushed the warm scales of Totodile's head but John's firm grip kept his hand in place. The Pokemon nuzzled his hand before darting back under the water. "See?" John said softly.

Sherlock's hand was still in the air where the Totodile had been and nodded. "I...what do I do?" he bit his lip. "Well, once we get out of the spring, you go get a Pokeball and catch him. Most likely he won't put up a fight and then you'll have a new Pokemon." John replied, watching as the Totodile attempted to scare the other Pokemon by sneaking up on him, only to be met with Arcanine's leer, retreating back under the water. "And look, he's already fitting in."


End file.
